Best Ska Music Bands

Ska is an interesting concoction of R&B, soul, and Caribbean music. It is also the predecessor of reggae and rocksteady. Ska bands throughout the world continue to, and quite literally, keep their fans on their toes with this upbeat and pumped-up music.

Melodyful Staff

Did You Know?The legendary Jamaican ska artist, Prince Buster credited the American tenor saxophonist, Willis Jackson for the creation of 'Ska music' through his song 'Later for the Gator'.

Having its origins firmly rooted in Jamaica, Ska emerged in 1958 and introduced a fun and upbeat concoction of Caribbean mento and calypso, American soul, rhythm, and blues sounds. Since its beginning, this genre of music has evolved in three waves, each changing the way ska sounded. Ska fans have a lot to thank legendary musicians such as Willis Jackson, Prince Buster, Jimmy Cliff, Eric "Monty" Morris, and Desmond Dekker for developing and sustaining this amazing genre of music.

Best Ska Music Bands of All Time

First Wave Ska Bands (1960s - Jamaica)

The Silvertones

The Melodians

The Clarendonians

Toots and the Maytals

Bob Marley & the Wailers

The Skatalites

Byron Lee and the Dragonaires

Higgs & Wilson

The Blues Busters

Clue J & His Blues Blasters

The Paragons

Symarip

Famous First Wave Ska Musicians (1960s)

Tommy McCook

Stranger Cole

Roland Alphonso

Owen Gray

Laurel Aitken

Lee "Scratch" Perry

Lloyd Knibb

Justin Hinds

Jackie Edwards

Jackie Opel

Eric "Monty" Morris

Derrick Morgan

Don Drummond

Carlos Malcolm

Oswald "Baba" Brooks

Alton Ellis

Aubrey Adams

Count Machuki

Desmond Dekker

Derrick Harriott

Delroy Wilson

Ernest Ranglin

John Arlington "Dizzy" Moore

Jimmy Cliff

Jerome "Jah Jerry" Haynes

Lord Tanamo

Lynn Taitt

Millie Small

Prince Buster

Rico Rodriguez

Theophilus Beckford

Val Bennett

Second Wave - 2 Tone Ska Revival Bands (1970s - England)

Bad Manners

The Beat

The Specials

The Selecter

Madness

The Bodysnatchers

Famous Second Wave Ska Musicians (1970s)

Suggs

Ranking Roger

Pauline Black

Mark Bedford

Lynval Golding

Judge Dread

John Bradbury

Everett Morton

Dave Wakeling

Chas Smash

Andy Cox

Buster Bloodvessel

Chris Foreman

Daniel Woodgate

Horace Panter

Jerry Dammers

Lee Thompson

Mike Barson

Neville Staple

Roddy Radiation

Rhoda Dakar

Terry Hall

Third Wave Ska and Ska Punk Bands (1980s - Present)

Yum!Yum!ORANGE

Walk off the Earth

The Unlimiters

The Urge

Tijuana No!

Talco

The Scholars

The Suicide Machines

The Skunks

The Rudimentals

The Rudiments

The Pietasters

The O.C. Supertones

The Know How

The Johnstones

The Impossibles

The Gadjits

The Flatliners

The Donkey Show

The Chinkees

The Allstonians

Suburban Rhythm

Sublime

Subb

Spring Heeled Jack

Sounds Like Chicken

Slapstick

Skavoovie and the Epitones

Ska-P

Starpool

Sonic Boom Six

Shaken 69

Ruder Than You

Rancid

Random Hand

Pressure Cooker

Pilfers

Panteón Rococó

OreSkaBand

Nuckle Brothers

MU330

Mouthwash

Mephiskapheles

Missing Andy

Mad Caddies

Los Fabulosos Cadillacs

Long Shot Party

Link 80

Less Than Jake

Kingston Rudieska

Kemuri

Johnny Socko

Jeffries Fan Club

Hub City Stompers

Hepcat

Gollbetty

General Rudie

Five Iron Frenzy

Edna's Goldfish

Desorden Público

Dance Hall Crashers

Citizen Fish

Choking Victim

Cherry Poppin' Daddies

Buck-O-Nine

Bim Skala Bim

Blue Meanies

Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution

B. Lee Band

Area-7

The Kingpins

Skankin' Pickle

The Scofflaws

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones

The Untouchables

The Allniters

No Nonsense

Skarface

The Busters

The Potato 5

The Burial

The Hotknives

Skaos

Mark Foggo's Skasters

Strange Tenants

The Porkers

The Toasters

Fishbone

Operation Ivy

No Doubt

Stomp Records

Against All Authority

Animal Chin

BAMF!

Blag

Big D and the Kids Table

Bomb The Music Industry!

Catch 22

Capdown

Chase Long Beach

Common Rider

Deal's Gone Bad

Distemper

Farse

Fuzigish

Go Jimmy Go

Goldfinger

High School Football Heroes

I Voted for Kodos

J-Stars

King Apparatus

Kid British

Lightyear

Let's Go Bowling

Locomondo

Los Kung-Fu Monkeys

Los Hooligans

Maldita Vecindad

Mealticket

Monkey

Mr. Review

Mustard Plug

No Torso

Orpheus

Pepper

Potshot

Pannonia Allstars Ska Orchestra

RedSka

Reel Big Fish

Rx Bandits

Ska Cubano

SOJA

Streetlight Manifesto

Slightly Stoopid

Skinnerbox

Slow Gherkin

Spunge

Stubborn All-Stars

Save Ferris

Suburban Legends

Superhiks

The Arrogant Sons of Bitches

The Crazy 8s

The Expendables

The Forces of Evil

The Hippos

The Insyderz

The King Blues

The Locos

The Orobians

The Planet Smashers

The Rough Kutz

The Skints

The Slackers

The Supervillains

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra

Tip the Van

The Upgrades

The Uptones

Voodoo Glow Skulls

Westbound Train

Zdob și Zdub

Enjoy the rich and diverse sounds of ska music, and add the songs from these bands to your playlist today!